Tour of Venice: How to See Venice Without Crowds of People

12

Jun

You can view all posts from my trip to Italy here. 

I’m still going through my thousands of photos from Italy (not an exaggeration), but I have made more progress with my photos from Venice! If you’re just tuning in, my first post on Venice was Skip Expensive Gondola Rides, Try Row Venice where my group of friends and I had an amazing boat tour in the local’s area on our first day in Venice. This post is how to see Venice without crowds of people, plus the worst food and the best Airbnb in the city.

We checked into our Airbnb, which was one of my favorite places we stayed the whole trip! We stayed in Appartamento Venezia, and it was in a nice and quiet area next to a little square. (It was a little hard to find since it was off a side street, but I have a photo of the door if you decide to stay there!). The host, Viorica, was very nice and friendly and kept apologizing for her English, but we didn’t have any problems understanding her.

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

We had some delicious food on our boat tour, but we were still a little hungry after a long day of traveling so we decided to split some dishes. One of my least favorite things about Venice was how much they catered to tourists, especially with the food. We even went off the main touristy streets, but this dinner at Pizzeria Pasqualigo was just meh (and reading reviews afterwards said the same). I’ve had better Italian food at chain restaurants in the U.S. And I’m sure there are better restaurants in the area, but we didn’t really plan for dinner and our internet wasn’t great so we couldn’t do any research.

I knew Italy was going to be pretty touristy, but from crazy expensive gondola rides to bad food, Venice had the most tourist traps of any city we visited by far. It was also the only place that I was so overwhelmed by the crowds of tourists the following day that I felt claustrophobic and on edge looking out for pick pockets. Venice was very beautiful and I did take tons of photos, but it wasn’t my favorite place.

We did find find a pretty awesome restaurant the next day though, so not all hope for good food in Venice is lost!

What to see in Venice, Italy

No complaints about the gelato near our Airbnb! I got pomegranate and it was absolutely delicious.

What to see in Venice, Italy

After sleeping hard with our serious jetlag, we were up the next day to explore the city. There was a cafe called Osteria dei Sapori near our Airbnb that we went to both mornings, and everything we tried there was delicious and the waitresses were so nice and helpful. One remembered us the second morning and even remembered everything we had ordered the day before!

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

We didn’t have a set itinerary in the morning, we mostly just wandered and took tons of photos until we ended up at Piazza San Marco. We didn’t get up at the crack of dawn, but we did get up early enough to have an empty Venice all to ourselves! If you want to know how to see Venice without crowds of people (and we did run into huge crowds of people that I talk about on my second Venice post), I definitely recommend doing your sightseeing as early as you can. The streets were pretty empty in the morning but got very busy later in the day, so I wouldn’t doing much exploring in the afternoon to avoid the crowds.

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

Since no cars are allowed in Venice, we got to see them collecting trash on boats! I always think it’s so interesting how other cultures do daily tasks like this.

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

One thing I wasn’t really expecting about the bridges in Venice is that they’re all stairs. Very few have ramps, so that can make things complicated when you have heavy rolling luggage- we learned that the hard way!

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

The famous Rialto Bridge was so pretty and also very empty in the morning, I definitely recommend visiting it in the morning because later that day, it was so crowded that we could barely cross the bridge.

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

We picked up some spices and risotto to cook for dinner later, and it was delicious! The man at the stand was very helpful in explaining what was in each bag. I went for the spiciest ones 😉

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

What to see in Venice, Italy

There were so many pretty buildings and houses in Venice, so stay tuned for my next post with more photos with my tour of Venice! 🙂 If you’ve been to Venice before, what was your favorite sight? Comment below!

Blog, Europe, Italy, Photography, Travel

  1. What a beautiful city and architecture! I’d love to visit Venice, it’s next on the bucket list!

    http://www.violetdaffodils.com
    xx

  2. Lorenzo says:

    Ciao, I’m living in Venice and I agree with you. Unfortunately Venice is changed, and is going to be a ‘fake’ touristy place. Too Many restaurant with bad food (expensive, as well!), horrible masks & glass shops, And so on. I’m really sorry for this.

  3. Your photos look amazing, Julia! Thank you so much for writing about your experiences because they will be very helpful for me as I travel to Italy. I will be studying as an exchange student in Trento, Italy for six months! Your posts make me so excited and giddy about it! 🙂

  4. Julia says:

    Venice is one of these cities that I really want to see for myself, but I can’t find the courage to *actually* book and go there. I’ve heard too many times that the city is crowded in tourists, and this seems to be all year round… Plus the prices as well make me postpone every time I’m contemplating what to visit in Italy. It is definitely a gorgeous place though!

    Julia x
    Last post: How Much Is My Makeup Worth? | http://juliaspeaksbeauty.blogspot.fr/2017/06/how-much-is-my-face-worth.html

    • Julia says:

      I think it’s worth visiting once as long as you know what you’re getting into! It is a beautiful city

  5. It’s such a beautiful place. I really hope to go one day. You got beautiful photographs.

  6. Kaitlynn says:

    Venice is one of those places in Italy I feel like everyone should visit at least once. We too were a bit disappointed with how many tourists there were though! We could barely breathe in some areas lol. Still, it is a beautiful city and a very unique one. One time we went with friends that had a baby… Man the husbands were tired from carrying the stroller up all the stairs all day!!

    • Julia says:

      I agree, I wouldn’t want to go back, but I’m happy I’ve experienced it! I was wondering how people with strollers and wheelchairs would manage, even I was struggling with all those stairs!

  7. Thanks so much for sharing so honestly. We’re going to Italy next summer and planning to go to Venice for at least a day or two as it does look beautiful and we want to see it, but I’ve read so many posts similar to this about it being very touristy!

    • Julia says:

      Yes it’s very touristy (and expensive), so I would definitely suggest going to more areas where locals are!

  8. I went to Venice during the Carnival, and I have to say, it was one of the most beautiful things I`ve ever seen !

    I still have to write a post about it on my blog, but I do have the pictures here;
    http://vickfphotos.com/travel/italy/carnevale-di-venezia/

    The city is beautiful but what impressed me the most was the costumes. So much details, so much luxury, creativity… Amazing!!! If you haven`t been there during the carnival, I recommend going back to Venice for this, as a photo lover you would love it!

  9. Christine says:

    This makes me miss Venice so much!! I loved it and would love to return. Love your photos too!

  10. Gorgeous! Make me want to go for sure. And that pasta!!!

  11. Siarra says:

    Your photos are AMAZING! Venice was the very first international place I’ve wanted to go and pictures make me truly excited my planning my trip! Beautiful colors!

  12. Jess says:

    Some lovely photos here ! I’ve never been to Italy at all but desperate to go ! Interesting that Venice wasn’t your favourite.

  13. There is so so much to Italy than just Venice. I was there twice thinking I would like it the second time, but I didn’t. But just like you, I also like the pictures I have from Venice

  14. Nerissa says:

    Incredible pictures! And pomegranate gelato, delicious!! I’m heading to Venice in a month so good to know that I can expect it to Bev very touristy.

  15. I, too, get claustrophobic around crowds, and it’s especially hard around tourists because everyone’s less aware of others. These are good tips, especially about visiting Rialto Bridge early. If (when) I visit, sounds like an apartment would be best. I love the idea of picking up local spices and produce!

  16. jin says:

    Love this! Venice is one of my favorite Italian cities! I’d like to go back during off peak season. I went in the middle of summer and it was insanely crowded and humid! Great photos, btw!

  17. Diana says:

    Venice looks stunning. The buildings are beautiful. We hope to visit next year.

  18. Leah says:

    Totally saving this! I have my trip coming up on September and i’m going solo so I’ve been looking for great posts that can show me the way!

    Leah

  19. I’m so sorry to hear you found it touristy with bad food!! We did a lot of food research before going and had some amazing meals. They were much much more expensive than the food in Florence which we went to after, but cheaper than where we started in Milan. We were also there in January so while it was chilly, we loved the vibe of Venice then! It was busy but I am sure nothing like other times of the year. Rome is where my research did no good and we still struggled to find great food for half of our meals!

    • Julia says:

      I loved all the food I had in Florence and I agree that it was much cheaper! That’s good to know about food in Rome, I’ll have to do research when I go!

  20. Stephanie says:

    Gosh – what a gorgeous place. I love these photos!

  21. Terra says:

    Oh man! I can’t wait to visit Italy. Thank you for sharing your gorgeous pictures.

  22. What a beautiful post about Venice! I am so lucky to live in Austria, 30 minutes from the Italian border! It is so stunning down there. You captured the town and culture perfectly 🙂
    Now I want to travel!
    xx, Theresa

  23. Tonya says:

    Your photos are amazing of Venice! If I ever get there I will have to take your advice and wander in the morning.

  24. Staci says:

    Been wanting to go to Italy for a while and your photos make me want to buy a ticket today and run away to Venice – so beautiful!!

  25. We’ve been talking about going back. Your post certainly inspires me to move forward on that!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

embed your form here

 Pellentesque rutrum maximus leo vitae blandit. Vestibulum vel est eu sem laoreet dapibus. Pellentesque cursus semper purus, a gravida tortor. Ut ac urna magna. 

Grab Your Guide